I Am A Soldier Born To Stand
by AAJ Edward
Summary: When Sasuke and a small special ops group are sent into the desert country run by the bloodthirsty Kazekgae, they find themselves in a battle of names. Can he really learn to love the one he thought was a monster? SasuGaa


I am back with yet another story to captivate my readers! Yes i am still working on all of my other ones! I just need a nice snow day from school to work on them all!:hint hint to the weather!: so I hope you peeps enjoy this one! And review please! It means a lot to know that people are actually reading my stories and your opinion is well valued!

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto nor do I own the song "rise" by Origa. If I did, I wouldn't be writing a FANFICTION **

* * *

**Origa - Rise**

I'm a soldier, znachit ya  
I otvetchik i sud'ya  
Ya stoyu na dvuh kontsah ognya  
Ogibaya virazhi, obgonyaya smert' i zhizn'  
Ya begu srazit'sya s ten'yu lzhi

Skol'ko b nitej ne plyol obman  
Pokazhet lik sveta istina

Save your tears  
for the day  
when our pain is far behind  
on your feet  
come with me  
we are soldiers stand or die

Save your fears  
take your place  
save them for the judgement day  
fast and free  
follow me  
time to make the sacrifice  
we rise or fall

I'm a soldier, born to stand  
in this waking hell I am  
witnessing more than I can compute

pray myself we don't forget  
lies, betrayed and the oppressed  
please give me the strength to be the truth

people facing the fire together  
if we don't, we'll lose all we have found

repeat

Za mechtoyu na kraj propasti  
Lish' tol'ko tak mozhno mir spasti

Ty ne plach',  
Slyozy spryach',  
Ved' nastanet novyj den'  
Tvoj ogon'  
Sogrevat'  
Budet tysyachi serdets  
A sejchas podnimis'  
Spryach' podal'she bol' i strah  
Pobedit tot, kto prav  
Znaj, chto vsyo v tvoih rukah

repeat

"I still Don't see why we have to help! This isn't our fucking war!" Kiba objected, sliding a full magazine clip into the semi automatic in his hands. Shino rolled his eyes and looked over to Shikamaru.

"Know where the Colonel is?" Shikamaru looked up and sighed.

"2nd Lt's probably keeping him held up." He replied. Sakura snorted.

"Yeah... we all know how Naruto is." At that moment in walked the blond Lt of topic. He grinned and took his seat in the C-27A Spartan. Another followed him, black hair spiking out behind his head. The colonel sighed and sunk into his own seat, running his hand through his hair.

"1st Lt Nara... Let the pilot know we're all here..." He muttered.

"Sir... we're still waiting on Akimichi..." Sasuke looked over at him and groaned right before the missing soldier climbed a board.

"I'm here!" He called out, rushing over to his seat and strapping as best he could. Sasuke looked over to Shikamaru and nodded. The Lt stood and moved through the ship, having already closed the hatch. This was going to be one long ass trip. So troublesome...

"Alright! Listen up! In your hands you have a briefing file on the situation! We're to help the soldiers wearing the sound symbol! Any one that has yet to figure out what it looks like had better just get off the ship now and save yourself the trouble and the enemy the bullet." Sasuke growled, walking through the small isle room between his squadron. Different colored eyes watched him, waiting for his command. "When we land, we're immediately in this game of cat and mouse. The enemy knows the lay out of this land better than we do. They're fighting for their homes so don't expect mercy and don't show them any either. Remember, we don't take prisoners. If you can, save the bullet and use your close combat weapons. Ammunition is scarce out here. And fill your canteen every chance you get. It's hot and the sun is unrelenting."

And just like that, the ship touched down with a quick jerk and the hatch unlocked. Sasuke looked at his squad and called for formation. Arming themselves, they easily slid into their places like rehearsed and trained. With a quick nod, the door was opened and they rushed from the ship, the hatch closing behind them and plane already moving from the ground.

Before them was a vast sea of golden sand, stained with blood. Bodies were scattered here and there, marking areas already conquered. What worried the squad, however, was not the amount of death, but the large total of ally soldiers compared to enemy.

Sasuke stopped and ducked his team behind a sand dune as gunshots rang out before a scream and what sounded to be a sickening crack. Looking over at the scene, Shikamaru paled. He quickly slid down and hissed.

"sir! I know the files said the soldiers had... unusual abilities, but... I just watched someone completely crushed by sand..." He forced out, gulping back his panic. Sasuke stopped looking at the map of the battle field and gave his 1st Lt a confused look.

"What?" Shikamaru could barely manage a nod. Sasuke sighed before cursing sharply, his voice carrying out farther than he would have thought. He stopped and looked over his shoulder only to find the sand they were hiding behind was gone. He blinked before seeing the feet before him. Black sandals that oddly enough, reminded him of ninja footwear. Letting his gaze slowly travel upwards, he found a pair of well shaped legs hidden within black pants, wrapped by what appeared to be bandages around the shins. His gaze then traveled up past the waist and stomach, he was sure well chiseled abs were hidden beneath the black muscle shirt the soldier wore. He kept his gaze moving up towards the shoulder, and arms crossed over a well toned torso. He nearly lost his breath as his black eyes locked onto a pair of teal eyes, narrowed and outlined in heavy black. A red tattoo above his left eye caught Sasuke's attention only long enough for him to register the kanji for love before he went back to those eyes.

"Oh shit..." Sasuke finally managed.

"Sir..." Shikamaru whispered. Sasuke glanced at him, noticing his Lt had a clear shot. He blinked an affirmative. In seconds Shikamaru had fired and they were running. Sasuke glanced over his shoulder and found sand falling from around the soldier. He slumped. The enemy was unscathed.

"I knew it! That old hag has it out for us! She hates us!" Naruto cried.

"Uzumaki! Stop talking about your wife that way!" Kiba yelped, dodging a wall of sand that lunged at him.

"Shut up! You leave Tsunade out of this!" Naruto growled back, jumping over a small wave of sand blocking his way.

"you know she's insane! You just said so yourself!" the Inuzuka shot back.

"Shut up! Both of you! Right now, we've got a pest problem to deal with!" Sasuke growled, shoving passed both of them and moving the group on, only stopping as a large figure, much like dragon formed within the sand, looming over their heads.

"Oh..." was all that could be said before it began plunging towards them.

"GET DOWN!!!!" Sakura called, shoving Kiba's head into the sand. The rest of the group followed, feeling wet sand fall around them. Sasuke looked up and exchanged a confused look with Shino. Gazes traveled to the place behind them only find a sound soldier smirking, a large hose in hand. The red headed soldier that had been giving them trouble merely frowned and sighed.

"you know Gaara... you've been giving my troops quite a bit of trouble... Guess we found your weakness." The man shrugged, his black hair falling around his shoulders. Sasuke wasn't sure why, but he reminded the Uchiha of a snake. Maybe it was his amber eyes and forked tongue.(1)

The red head just smirked and titled his head, sand seeming to shift away from his body and out of his hair. Sasuke sighed. What was it with them and getting sent on the weird missions?

"Come now, Orochimaru... we thought your troops would have pulled out by now... after all... this has turned out as more of a... slaughter frenzy?" Gaara chuckled. Orochimaru let his smirk disappear as he looked over at Sasuke's squad slightly, keeping Gaara in his sights at all time.

"You guys alright?"

"Oh we're peachy, Sir!" Sasuke called back, trying to get some of the wet sand from his hair. Naruto was currently spazing about it having gotten down his pants. Sakura rolled her eyes. Even the medic was dealing with it better than the blond soldier.

"Good! Now... do me a favor... hold this." He handed the water hose over to Shikamaru and approached Gaara. The enemy soldier sighed and rolled his eyes.

"You really think, I'm that dense?" His words were cut short as a rumble sounded, drawing everyones attention to the oasis. Where a large cloud was now rising up over the ground. Gaara's eyes widened.

"Duck..." He said, his voice remaining calm. That was all that any of them remembered.

A brook sounded nearby, water rushing over rocks filled Sasuke's senses as he cracked open his eyes to find a green canopy around him. He blinked and frowned. This didn't make sense. He was supposed to be in a desert fighting a battle. And where were the gunshots? And his teammates?

"KIBA!!!!!!" Ah... there they were. Sasuke sat up and groaned, his body protesting the movement.

"I wouldn't move much if I were you..." a rather deep, almost frightening voice sounded only feet from him. Jumping, Sasuke whirled around and immediately regretted the action as his head began to spin, making him slightly nauseous.

"Told you you shouldn't be moving much..." the red head muttered, finally looking over at him. He was wrapping up Shikamaru's ankle, the joint being covered in blood and still bleeding slightly. The Uchiha blinked for a bit before registering that he should be fighting this person.

"W-Why are you helping us?" He croaked out. The other looked at him and went back to his task.

"We're the only ones that made it out of that explosion. I went back and searched for an survivors. I didn't find anyone. Your squad made it out because of the sand shield I put around us." Sasuke only blinked in confusion, now noticing just how dry his throat was. With that realization, he was thrown into a coughing fit that made him double over. He finally stopped and noticed a canteen being held in front of him, waiting for him to take it. He accepted the water and drained the entire contents.

"I guess I have you to thank then... I'm Sasuke Uchiha, by the way..." the red head nodded.

"thats what Uzumaki said. I'm Gaara Sabaku..."

"Sabaku?" Sasuke questioned.

"Sabaku no Gaara... we don't have last names in my country... just our title if we are able to control an element or have some sort of an ability. You'll find incidents of an entire family sharing a title. That happens only when Seed has living relatives."

"Seed?" The Uchiha was seriously thinking he was going to be stuck in this state of confusion when Gaara nodded.

"A Seed... some one like me." Sasuke blinked.

"Oh... well that was... almost ridiculously easy..." Gaara cracked a small smile.

"Confusing? Try learning by trial and error..."

"So...you still haven't answered my question... why did you save us?" Gaara was silent for a bit, the only noise being the arguing from the squad behind them.

"We didn't set that bomb. We barely have the technology for guns. Our rifles are far behind yours in every possible aspect. I also know that your people didn't set that bomb... nor did Orochimaru's." Sasuke blinked and tilted his head, running a hand through his hair and leaning back.

"How do you know this?"

"We have a common enemy, whether you'll admit it or not. They call themselves the Akatsuki. This war was started by the rebel group. They started it and just watched as confusion took over and soon the war we now know was started. We did nothing wrong. Neither did the Sound country."

"then why don't you talk to your leader?"

"I am this country's leader. They rely on me to keep them safe. Negotiations were ended long ago when an attempt was made on my life. My brother forced me to cut ties and go into the defensive. I was backed into a corner with that as my only way of saving my home. I'm guessing your own leader didn't tell you much before you came here." Sasuke shook his head. Gaara was right, almost frighteningly so.

"No... Just enough to know what our objective was and who was friend and who was foe."

"I'll get you and your squad home. But you'll need to rest. My home village of Suna isn't too far from here... about day and a half walk. Do you think you can walk?" Sasuke nodded and stood, stretching his sore back and looking over to his team.

Naruto was currently sitting in the river, a fish hanging from his mouth as it's tail flipped wildly around in an attempt to get free. Shino was currently trying to pull away from an overly eager Kiba who seemed to be trying to molest him to death. Shikamaru was laughing at Naruto and his off balance antics while Sakura chided him for being so careless. A small smile found its way to Sasuke's face. This was his squad, every last one of them.

"Nara... you'll need some one to help you walk..." Gaara pointed out, beckoning over the dripping blond, fish now gone from his mouth. "Help him, will you?" Naruto nodded and slipped one of Shikamaru's arms around his shoulders. The blond gave Gaara a reassuring grin before helping the brunette walk away from the leader of Suna. Gaara watched them walk towards the others, his eyes watching to make sure Nara's ankle wouldn't give out.

"Thank you..." Sasuke finally said, walking over to Gaara. The red head looked at him before going back to watching the wounded soldier.

"He won't be able to walk that fast... it'll slow the journey, but we'll still get there by tomorrow evening."

The walk to Suna had been faster than both Sasuke and Gaara had been thinking. The sun had burned the skin of Sasuke's squad, their skin not red but more of a beaten brown. It almost resembled wind burns from the northern parts of Sasuke's home country. It was outside of the city limits as the sun was beginning to set that Gaara stopped the small group.

"When we enter Suna, you'll need to be... ready for just about anything." He said calmly, stopping only for a moment to think of the right words. "we don't take too kindly to strangers for reasons as already shown. Just hang low and stick close." He looked at the others and waited as each one gave their consent, Sasuke being the last. It felt almost as if he were signing his life away, but Gaara was their only hope of getting home. The red head finally seemed satisfied and continued walking across the scorching desert sands. The Uchiha frowned. Even with the sun going down it was almost like a furnace out here. He was beginning to regret ever allowing his group to leave the oasis.

The sight that greeted them was a rather lively village... or was it a city? Sasuke wasn't quite sure. All he knew was that it was a home to these people just like Konoha was home for him. Seeing these people in their natural habitat, seeing them interacting with others just like humans should, made him begin questioning what had possessed himself to see them as anything but human.

A relieved sob sounded across the clearing they were walking through and Sasuke looked up to see a blond woman running over to them, her eyes shinning with tears as she fought to keep them at bay. A large fan rested along her back, a strap holding it on as it was slung over one shoulder, crossing her stomach and hip.

"Gaara! Brother! You're back!" she cried, flinging her arms around their red headed rescuer.

"Yes, Temari. Do we have five spare rooms set up?" Gaara asked, pulling back and looking at his sister's brown eyes. She nodded, glancing behind her brother and leader's shoulder at the Konohan soldiers.

"Gaara... who..?"

"I'll explain it later. For now our guests need rooms to rest in. I promise you, they will cause no harm." Temari seemed uneasy, but nodded none the less. Gaara was her leader either way. She had to respect his judgment and trust him. She looked to the others and smiled, though weak it was still a smile.

"Welcome to Suna, friends. Come. I'll show you to your rooms. Oh! And Kazekage-sama... Some of the elders are requesting a meeting. Kankuro's in your office awaiting your return. He's been filing paper work for you in your absence." she said before leading the others off. Gaara nodded.

"Thank you, Temari. Sasuke, if you don't mind I'd like to talk to you before you leave to rest. Come to my office." He said, nodding towards the stairs outside the main Kazekage building that lead up to his office. Sasuke blinked, but nodded and followed. Maybe he'd learn more about this mysterious Kazekage, the one known as Sabaku no Gaara.


End file.
